Shaft-coupling.



"0.6741124. Patented May 14, |9o|.

F. SHAW.

SHAFT coururm.

(Application fllgd Apr. 6, 1896.) (N0 0661.)

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llniTnn STATES PATENT Drricn,

FRANK SHAl/V, OF SYRACUSE, NElV YORK.

SHAFT-COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 674,024, dated May 14, 1901.

Application filed April 6, 1896.

To all whom it 777/607 concern.-

Be it known that l, FRANK SHAW, of Syracuse, in the county of Onondaga, in the State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Shaft-Couplings, of which the following, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to improvements in shaft-coupliugs of the class set forth in my previous patent, No. 441,445, of November 25, 1890, and in my divisional application, Serial No. 33,638, filed October 19, 1900, and has for its object the production of a device which is cheaply manufactured and is particularly effective and durable in use; and to this end it consists, essentially, in the combination, construction, and arrangement of the outer shell and the inner sleeve of the shaft-coupling, as hereinafterfully described, and pointed out in the claims.

In describing this invention reference is had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which like letters indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

Figure l is a longitudinal vertical sectional view of my improved shaft-coupling, its inner sleeve being shown in elevation and as operatively engaged with a shaft. an end View of a portion of my improved shaft-coupling Figs. 3 and 4 are transverse and longitudinal sectional views taken, respectively, on lines 3 3 and 4 4, Figs. 1 and 3, the shaft being omitted in Fig. 4. Fig. 5 is a plan View of the inner sleeve of my shaftcoupling shown as split lengthwise and as folded fiat.

A A are movable sections forming the outer shell of my improved shaft-coupling, and C is a shaft-receiving sleeve arranged within said shell. The sections A A are formed with conical or tapering inner faces a and apertures a, and are adjusted or drawn toward each other by clamping means, as bolts D. The inner sleeve C encircles the divisions of the shaft D to be coupled, is composed of spring metal, and is formed with conical or tapering ends, which engage the inner faces a of the sections A A. The inner face of the sleeve 0 is normally of slightly less diameter than the divisions of the shaft D to be coupled. Said sleeve 0 is formed with a plural- Fig. 2 is Serial No. 586,354. No model ity of longitudinal substantially equidistant slots 0, extending from one of its end facesinto proximity to the opposite end face, and with a plurality of additional substantially equidistant longitudinal slots 0, extending alternately between the slots 0 from said opposite end face into proximity to the former end face. The slots 0 divide the sleeve 0 into a number of yielding parts o which taper or decrease in thickness toward the ends of the sleeve, are formed with substantially concave inner faces, are connected together at opposite sides at one end of the sleeve, are separable at opposite sides from their connected portions to the opposite end of the sleeve, and engage the faces a of the sections A A and the periphery of the shaft D, inserted within said sleeve, and each slot 0' extends from substantially the central point of the end edge of the connected end of one of the yielding parts 0 and divides said yielding part into longitudinal yielding divisions or branches connected together at the free end of said yielding part and separable from their connected portions to the opposite end of the sleeve.

The described construction of the sleeve 0 is particularly efficient, since portions of the parts a and their divisions or branches are connected together at the ends of the sleeve and additional portions of said parts and their divisions or branches are separable'fro m each other owing to the presence of the slots 0 0, thus permitting the sleeve 0, having its inner face normally of less diameter than the shaft D, to be expanded to encircle said shaft without change in the curvature of the inner faces of said movable parts a and their divisions or branches, whereupon the lengthwise edges of the inner faces of said parts and their divisions or branches will rest upon the shaft D, and the interposed portions of said inner faces will be slightly separated from the contiguous portion of the periphery of the shaft D, and as the sections A A are drawn together by the bolts D said parts 0 and their divisions or branches will firmly and positively hold the shaft D.

The construction and operation of my shaftcoupling will now be readily perceived upon reference to the foregoing description and the accompanying drawings.

Having. thusfnlly described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a shaft-coupling, the combination with an outer shell consisting of sections having tapering inner faces, and clamping means for adjusting the sections endwise toward each other; of a shaft, and a sleeve for encircling the shaft, said sleeve being arranged within the outer shell and having its inner face normally of less diameter than said shaft to be encircled thereby, and being provided with substantially longitudinal movable parts for engaging said tapering inner faces and the periphery of the shaft, said substantially longitudinal movable partshaving substantially concave inner faces and having portions thereofconnected' and additional portions thereof separablefrom each other for permitting'the sleeve to be expandedto encircle the shaft without change in the curvature of the inner faces of said movable parts, substantially-as and for the purpose described.

2. In a shaft-coupling, the combination with an outer shell consisting of sections having tapering inner faces, and clamping means for adjusting the sections endwise toward each other; of a shaft, and a sleeve for encircling the shaft,said sleeve being arranged within the outer shell and having its inner face normally of less diameter than said shaft to be encircled thereby, and said sleeve being formed with longitudinal substantially equidistant slots extending from one endface into proximity to the opposite end face, and thereby forming a plurality of longitudinal yielding parts connected together at one end of the sleeve, and having substantially concave inner faces and being also formed with additional slots extending alternately between the former slots from said opposite end face of the sleeve into proximity to the former end face of the sleeve for dividing said yielding parts into yielding divisions or branches, the divisions 'or branches of each yielding part being con nected at the free endof said part, and said parts and their divisions or branches having their portions on opposite sides of said slot-s separable from each other for permitting the sleeve to be expanded to encircle the shaft without change in the curvature of the inner faces of said movable parts and their divisions or branches, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto signed my name, in the presence of two attesting witnesses, atSyracuse, in the county of Onondaga, in the State of New York, this 18th day of March, 1896,

FRANK SHAW.

Witnesses:

E. A; WEISBURG, K. H; THEOBALD. 

